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The U.S. Senate releases thousands of pages of transcripts from closed-door hearings held by Sen. Joseph McCarthy. The committee McCarthy chaired in the mid-1950s interrogated political and cultural figures in an anti-Communist crusade. Hear Associate Senate Historian Donald Ritchie.

In Part 10 of our series on the roots of American country music, NPR's Paul Brown tells the story of Bob Wills. The fiddler grew up in a family of fiddlers in the cultural mixing bowl of the American southwest. He went on to lead a band that mixed breakdowns, big band swing, blues and square dance music — a style that came to be called Western swing.

NPR's Melissa Block talks with Larry Charles, who directed the new movie starring Bob Dylan, Masked and Anonymous. Charles also picked the songs for the soundtrack. They're all Dylan songs — either he's performing them or a panoply of international musicians are. We sample some of the international fare. Among them are Italian and Japanese covers of Dylan tunes, which Charles says are testament to Dylan's worldwide appeal.

Twenty-five years after his death, it's still difficult to get many people not to think of Keith Moon as just a hard-drinking, lunatic rock star who would smash his drum set on stage or destroy a hotel room. But his biographer, Tony Fletcher, says The Who's legendary drummer should be remembered as the man who forever changed the sound of rock 'n' roll. On Weekend Edition Sunday, NPR's Liane Hansen talks to the author and bandmate Roger Daltrey about Moon's legacy.

At 74, he's a reigning ambassador of Latin jazz, and percussionist Ray Barretto is still going strong. NPR's Felix Contreras profiles the artist. Hear clips of the song that inspired Barretto to take up jazz and a track from his latest album, Homage to Art Blakey.

Verve Records has again invited DJs and electronic musicians to remix classics from it's extensive catalog. Music critic Michelle Mercer has a review of the Verve Remixed 2 CD.

Johnny Cash, country music's "Man in Black," dies due to complications from diabetes at 71. Cash, whose hits include "I Walk the Line," and "A Boy Named Sue," earned 11 Grammys in his six-decade career and was inducted into the Country Music, the Rock and Roll and the Songwriters halls of fame. Cash's death comes four months after the death of his wife, June Carter Cash. Hear NPR's Bob Edwards.

In the latest installment of the series "Honky Tonk, Hymns and the Blues," NPR's Paul Brown explores the origins of the country fiddle — from Eck Robertson to the very word, "fiddle." Paul also explains why it's called "the Devil's box."

The bluegrass legends played in NPR's studios, and spoke to host Melissa Block.

Alfred Matthew Yankovic is the king of pop parody. You know him better as "Weird Al." NPR's Steve Inskeep caught up with the 43-year-old funny man on tour to promote his latest CD, Poodle Hat.